Media Advisory/Ontario government indifference fostering neglect of frail LTC residents: PSW, RPN focus group study to be released in Lindsay Friday finds

LINDSAY, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Nov. 25, 2014) - The findings of a focus group study of personal support workers (PSWs) and registered practical nurses (RPNs) working in long-term care (LTC) will be released at a 10:00 a.m. media conference in Lindsay, Friday November 28, 2014.

Since the mid-1990s, when a mandatory daily LTC resident care level was eliminated by the then provincial government, staffing levels have not kept pace with the ever-increasing, complex care needs of residents, the majority of whom are over 80 years old.

Statistics Canada reports that Ontario spends $155.30 per long-term care resident a day. This is far less spending on residential care facilities than other provinces. Only New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island spend less.

The Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU) of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) spoke with dozens of PSWs and RPNs working in long-term care in five different Ontario communities to determine how provincial policies and funding levels were affecting the kind of care they are currently able to provide residents.

OCHU also asked the focus group PSWs and RPNs to comment on what better care would look like and what resources would be necessary in order to ensure its delivery.

The findings of the study entitled, Long-Term Care in Ontario: Fostering Systemic Neglect, will be released at 10:00 a.m., Friday November 28, at the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 67, 12 York Street North, Lindsay.